Yemisi Izuora
The Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) said there is likelihood of upsurge in passenger, cargo and aircraft traffic by last quarter of this year.
The agency said the upsurge would be prompted with the completion and commissioning of terminals and other related projects at the nations airports.
FAAN, spokesperson Yakubu Dati stated that with improvements in terminal and airside facilities at these airports, a number of local airlines in the country have already started expanding their route network, some extending to the West Coast of Africa.
He disclosed that some foreign airlines with Lagos as their only destination have also begun to show interest in operating into Mallam Aminu Kano and Port Harcourt International Airports, adding that Qatar Air is one of such airlines, following the recent signing of Bilateral Air Services Agreement (BASA) between Nigeria and Qatar.
“Significant increase in passenger, aircraft and cargo traffic at Nigerian airports, especially those managed by the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria, became noticeable towards the end of last year.
In September, the figure for passenger movements in all the airports was 316, 680. The figure grew steadily to 318, 503 in October, 328,652 in November and 336,652 in December, 2015.”
Dati noted that during the same period in 2015, cargo movements grew steadily from 13, 504, 252 in September, 15, 435, 842 in October, 16, 102, 686 and 16, 267, 208 in December.
Other factors likely to influence the growth of passenger and cargo traffic this year include the completion of cargo terminals at designated airports across the country.